Elspeth Hay is a writer and food systems thinker who’s inviting us to radically rethink how we grow our food. In her book Feed Us with Trees, she uncovers a forgotten story—one in which humans once thrived by cultivating staple foods like acorns, chestnuts, and hazelnuts in forest gardens rather than plowed fields. Through conversations with Indigenous knowledge-keepers, scientists, nut […]
I used to think companies were just giving us what we wanted. If people asked for faster cars, cheaper clothes, or tastier snacks, companies would listen and deliver. The market follows demand. Right? But then the day came when I realized that I was wrong – it works the other way around. Companies create what they want to sell, and […]
Kelly Wendorf is a leadership teacher, coach, and author of Flying Lead Change: 56 Million Years of Wisdom for Leading and Living. Drawing on indigenous teachings, neuroscience, and the wisdom of horses, she offers a nature-based approach to leadership that fosters connection, care, and resilience. Wendorf guides leaders—whether in workplaces, families, or communities—to “lead from behind,” creating safety, presence, and […]
Bridget A. Lyons is a writer, artist, and explorer whose new book Entwined: Dispatches from the Intersection of Species takes readers on a journey into the wisdom of the more-than-human world. Blending memoir, science, and travelogue, Lyons explores what octopuses, owls, kelp, stingrays, and countless other beings can teach us about resilience, relationships, and living in harmony with our planet. […]
The final exercise of Leadership Step By Step! For this last exercise, we had to support and manage a person that we lead to doing a task for us. The steps were: I decided to do this exercise with someone whom I had a lot of contact with so I could give myself the highest chances of success: my daughter […]
Kelly Ramsey is a former wildland firefighter and debut author of Wildfire Days, a gripping memoir about her time as the only woman on an elite hotshot crew battling megafires in California. With raw honesty, she shares the physical, emotional, and cultural toll of life on the fireline—and what it reveals about a West increasingly shaped by climate-fueled disaster. Find […]
8/16/25 Update: I totally forgot that I didn’t post all my leadership exercises! Just a couple left to go! This week, the exercise was to do the exact same exercise as last week, but now with confidence! In short, get more practice leading more people. If you need a reminder, the process is: I was able to do the exercise […]
For this week in Leadership, the exercise of the week was to lead others using empathy. The process was as follows (modified slightly for how I did it): I found this exercise to be REALLY challenging to start doing. I spent a lot of time thinking about the implications of doing the exercise: is it manipulative? Is there a reason […]
Today I found myself thinking a lot about the values that are embodied in sustainability. I think the definition of “sustainable” varies from person to person, and to some people, believing in sustainability means being naive or unrealistically optimistic – that we humans could never get to a world that is just, because we’re just too corrupted and selfish. But […]
Exercise 18 of Leadership Step By Step was to have another 10 conversations with a goal of making people feel understood. Again, a script was provided and the short version is: The idea with this script is that you ask someone about their passion, then give them the space to delve into their passion and really explore what it is […]